Backyard Lighthouse

Gift-wise...last years Fathers Day was my best ever. My kids don't always get me something (which is fine by me), but 3 nice gifts last year.

My oldest daughter got me a $50 dollar gift certificate to the Evil Empire (Walmart.) I may eventually use it to buy a new camera...so the verdict is still out on that.

Daughter #2 and her husband got me this wooden lighthouse. It lights my way when I go out with my two dogs at night. The top (the light) is missing in action. I'm sure I put it away in a "safe place" so it would be easy to find in the spring.

My son got me an old-fashioned popcorn maker. It's the type where you add a couple tablespoons of oil, and when the corn starts popping...you "crank" the handle so it does'nt burn the corn. Add a little butter and a little salt...and you're halfway home to your own little Garden of Eatin.

I can't say anything yet about the gift-card. When daughter #2 comes over I tell her I love the lighthouse, but I can't eat it. My son catches me eating popcorn, and I tell him I love the lighthouse.

They "argue" about who got me the best gift. I won't give them the satisfaction of revealing my answer, but "Please pass the salt." Just a joke.

In the background are some of my license plates that hang on my fence. Daughter #2 cried when I put them up for her high school open house. Just below the fence...I put in a dozen tomato plants today. The sand in the foreground was where my pool was. This time of year...I begin to miss it.

Between weeding and planting...I'm dirty from ankles to nose. 6 hours in the backyard. A quick shower, and then to the kitchen to make supper. A retirees work is never done.